Amended in Assembly March 26, 2015

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 629

Introduced by Assembly Member Perea

February 24, 2015

An act to amend Sections 62070 and 62071 begin delete of end delete begin insert of, and to add Section 62033 to, end insert the Food and Agricultural Code, relating to market milk.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 629, as amended, Perea. Market begin delete milk. end delete begin insert milk: stabilization and marketing plans: federal milk marketing order. end insert

Existing law authorizes the Secretary of Food and Agriculture to formulate stabilization and marketing plans that establish the prices to be paid by milk handlers for specified classes of market milk. Existing law provides that a stabilization and marketing plan may provide for, among other things, maximum charges for plant processing and transportation services, and minimum charges for the various services performed by a nonprofit cooperative association regarding class 1 market milk. begin insert Existing law authorizes the secretary to amend or terminate any stabilization and marketing plan after notice and public hearing in accordance with specified requirements. end insert

This bill would begin insert require the secretary to terminate all stabilization and marketing plans without further action by the producers of market milk if the producers approve and adopt a federal milk marketing order by January 1, 2017. The bill would also end insert make nonsubstantive changes to the provisions regarding maximum and minimum charges, including updating a cross-reference.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee:  begin delete no end delete begin insert yes end insert . State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

begin insert

begin insert SECTION 1. end insert   

end insert

begin insert Section 62033 is added to the end insert begin insert Food and
Agricultural Code end insert begin insert , to read: end insert

begin insert

begin insert 62033. end insert   

Notwithstanding any other law, if the producers of
market milk approve and adopt a federal milk marketing order by
January 1, 2017, the secretary shall terminate all stabilization
and marketing plans without further action by the producers, and
the secretary shall proceed with an orderly transition to a federal
milk marketing order in a manner that does not disrupt the market
or payment to producers.

end insert

begin delete SECTION 1. end delete
begin insert SEC. 2. end insert   

Section 62070 of the Food and Agricultural Code is
amended to read:

62070.  

Each stabilization and marketing plan may further
provide for maximum charges for plant processing and
transportation service on the market milk or market milk
components that are transported to the area where sold. The
stabilization and marketing plan may enumerate the applicable
maximum charges, and may establish individual charges for each
function enumerated. In establishing any maximum charges for
transportation services, the secretary shall base the maximum
charges upon the rates that are charged for actual or reasonably
similar services by highway carriers, as the term “highway carriers”
is defined in Section 737.3 of the Public Utilities Code.

begin delete SEC. 2. end delete
begin insert SEC. 3. end insert   

Section 62071 of the Food and Agricultural Code is
amended to read:

62071.  

Each stabilization and marketing plan may provide for
minimum charges for the various services performed or rendered
by a nonprofit cooperative association with respect to class 1
market milk sold or delivered to another handler. Handler services
include component testing for payment purposes, quality control,
producer payroll, and weighing and sampling of bulk market milk.
Each stabilization and marketing plan may also include, but not
be limited to, minimum charges for the handling of intermittent
or irregular deliveries of market milk and plant standby services.
The stabilization and marketing plan may enumerate applicable
minimum charges and establish individual charges for each service
enumerated or, in the alternative, the secretary may establish one
or more minimum charges covering one or more of the separate
handler services.